Simpert

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Holy Simpert
Statue of Bishop Simperts in front of the Augsburg Cathedral
Statue of Bishop Simperts in front of the Augsburg Cathedral
Born around 750
Deceased October 13, 807 (Augsburg)
canonization January 6, 1468 by Pope Nicholas V.
Holiday October 13th
Place of worship St. Ulrich and Afra Basilica , Augsburg
Patron saint for the Diocese of Augsburg , City of Augsburg ; Augsburg diocesan youth
Attributes Wolf with a child in its mouth

Simpert (also Sintpert , Simbert , Sindbert ) (* around 750; † probably October 13, 807 in Augsburg ) was bishop in Augsburg from 778 to 807 . In a document dated January 6, 1468, Pope Nicholas V allowed Simpert to be worshiped as a saint on site. Pope Gregory XV 1622 approved the veneration in the entire Augsburg diocese .

Church historical circumstances

Simpert lived at the time of Charlemagne . The episcopate was entrusted to him by the king. Augsburg was caught in the conflict between the Franks and the Bavarians and, further east, the Avars . Charlemagne put the Bavarian Duke Tassilo III in 788 . for breach of loyalty and incorporated the duchy into the Franconian Empire .

There were possibly family ties of Simpert to Charlemagne. He could have been the ruler's nephew. As personal representative of Charlemagne, Simpert was sent to the Provincial Synod in Reisbach (Lower Bavaria) in 799 . Among other things, she discussed legal questions of the clergy and the participation of lay people in worship.

Life

There are many details compared to Simpert's episcopal predecessors, but many of them are not secure or tenable. Nothing has been handed down about childhood and adolescence; there is contradicting information about the first years of manhood.

It is said, for example, that Simpert was abbot of the Murbach monastery in Alsace . In fact, a "Sintpert" is mentioned in the local abbot catalog, but for the period from 789 to 792. Since there were only two bishops with this name at that time (in Augsburg and from 768–791 in Regensburg ) and the Regensburg bishop died in 791 , this claim is still relatively likely. Because the predecessor, Bishop Tozzo , came to the Lech from Alsace, there is a hypothesis that Charlemagne could have entrusted Simpert with the task in Augsburg. However, this process is more likely to be dated to the year 778, when Tozzo allegedly died.

From 789 Simpert was allegedly also bishop of the Diocese of Neuburg-Staffelsee , which he incorporated into the Diocese of Augsburg around 802 . A papal document of April 11, 800 describes him as "Bishop of Staffelsee". However, hardly any documents have survived on the history of the Neuburg diocese. He is said to have been abbot at the Staffelsee monastery on the island of Wörth at the same time .

Grave of St. Simpert in St. Ulrich and Afra, Augsburg

Simpert was probably a confidante of Charlemagne ; at least Augsburg was massively promoted under this ruler. It is certain that the Augsburg Cathedral was completed and consecrated under Simpert. As bishop, he also buried Abbot Waldram of the Benediktbeuern monastery and consecrated Eliland as his successor. He took care of the prosperity of the Sankt Mang monastery in Füssen .

Overall, Simpert seems to have been an important figure in life at the time. Augsburg was badly hit in the battles between Bavaria and Franconia at the time. Simpert is said to have contributed a lot to the reconstruction here.

Simpert died on October 13th. The year is not recorded; but it will probably have been 807. Since 1492 his relics rest in the basilica St. Ulrich und Afra, Augsburg ; the local abbot Konrad Mörlin had campaigned for the transfer of the bones and promoted the cult of the saint. Its baroque grave monument in this church is attributed to the sculptor Johann Jakob Herkomer (1652–1717).

Remembrance day and patronage

Saint Simpert with the wolf. Sandstone relief in the Sankt Konstantin Church , Fiè allo Sciliar, South Tyrol
  • Remembrance day is October 13th.
  • St. Simpert is the third patron saint for the city and diocese of Augsburg (next to St. Ulrich and St. Afra ).
  • Since the end of the Simpert year on October 13, 2007, St. Simpert has also been the patron of the Augsburg diocesan youth and diocesan youth work.
  • The St. Simpert Church in downtown Augsburg is dedicated to him.
  • The Simpert Chapel on the island of Wörth in the Staffelsee is named after him.
  • Around six cities in southern Germany have named streets after him.
  • Simpert is a male given name, for example Simpert Kraemer , baroque builder, carried.

iconography

Bishop Simpert is sketched together with a wolf with a child in its mouth. According to legend, he saved a small child from a raging wolf.

literature

See also

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b St. Simpert - Bishop of Augsburg (778 to 807) ( Memento from June 30, 2010 in the Internet Archive )
  2. ↑ a b c Lothar Bily:  SIMPERT (also: Simbert, Sintpert), Bishop of Augsburg. In: Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon (BBKL). Volume 10, Bautz, Herzberg 1995, ISBN 3-88309-062-X , Sp. 478-480.  ( Article / beginning of article in Internet archive )
  3. ↑ Joseph Heinrich Wolf : Documented chronicle of Munich and all surrounding places . Volume 2, Munich 1854, pp. 76-82, especially p. 81 ( online ).

Web links

Commons : Simpert  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files
predecessor Office successor
Tozzo Bishop of Augsburg
778–807 		Hanto
Odalbert Bishop of Neuburg
789–802 		---
personal data
SURNAME Simpert
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Sintpert, Simbert
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Bishop in Augsburg and Neuburg
DATE OF BIRTH around 750
DATE OF DEATH October 13, 807
Place of death augsburg